Zimmerman makes court appearance in Trayvon Martin shooting

Neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman has made his first court appearance on a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

During the brief appearance this afternoon, Zimmerman stood up straight and wore a gray prison jumpsuit. He spoke only to answer “Yes, sir,” after he was asked basic questions about the charge against him and his attorney.

The judge said an arraignment would be held on May 29 before another judge.

Zimmerman was charged after a public campaign to make an arrest in the Feb. 26 shooting, which has galvanized the nation for weeks. Some legal experts had expected Zimmerman to face a lesser count of manslaughter and say a prosecutor will face steep hurdles to win a murder conviction. Zimmerman has claimed that he fired in self-defense.

Ed will have the latest developments in the case tonight on The Ed Show at 8pET on msnbc!